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1 147071544CBS to air the Sisi interview that the Egyptian state tried to blockhttps://www.islam21c.com/news-views/cbs-to-air-the-sisi-interview-that-the-egyptian-state-tried-to-block/
https://www.islam21c.com/news-views/cbs-to-air-the-sisi-interview-that-the-egyptian-state-tried-to-block/#respondSat, 05 Jan 2019 22:20:42 +0000https://www.islam21c.com/?p=40041The CBS Television network has rejected requests by the Egyptian embassy not to broadcast an interview with president Abdel Fattah el-Sisi…

]]>CBS, the US TV network, will broadcast its interview with Egyptian president Abdel Fattah el-Sisi this Sunday after rejecting a request from the Egyptian envoy not to air the broadcast.

During the 60 Minutes programme the Egyptian president was questioned on his relationship with Israel, the mass detainment of political prisoners and the violent and deadly crackdown on protestors following the 2013 military coup.

Although a full transcript has not been released by CBS, Sisi confirmed that Egyptian security forces were collaborating with Israel in battling militant groups within the Sinai Peninsula. Sisi told CBS correspondent Scott Pelley:

“That is correct… We have a wide range of cooperation with the Israelis.” [1]

The president was also asked about reports published by human rights organisations which reported that 60,000 people have been imprisoned and tortured since he seized power in 2013. [2]

Sisi responded by saying, “I don’t know where they got that figure. I said there are no political prisoners in Egypt. Whenever there is a minority trying to impose their extremist ideology we have to intervene regardless of their numbers” [3]

The former defense minister was also asked by CBS if he had given the order to fire on protestors in 2013 that lead to a massacre of at least 1150 Egyptians demonstrating against the military coup that overthrew Egypt’s first democratically elected Parliament and President. [4]

Executive Director of Human Rights Watch, Kenith Roth stated that:

“Egyptian Forces carried out one of the world’s largest killings of demonstrators in a single day in recent history.” [5]

He further added:

“This wasn’t merely a case of excessive force or poor training. It was a violent crackdown planned at the highest levels of the Egyptian government. Many of the same officials are still in power in Egypt, and have a lot to answer for.”

However, Sisi simply claimed that: “there were thousands of armed people in the sit-in for more than 40 days. We tried every peaceful means to disburse [sic] them”. [6]

Following the interview, the 60 Minutes programme was contacted by the Egyptian embassy and requested that CBS not broadcast the interview as the questions asked by the broadcaster “were not the kind of news [Mr Sisi’s] government wanted broadcast”. [7]

Sisi has made attempts to legitimise his regime through successive rigged elections and the arrests of notable scholars and political activists under the pretence of “fighting extremism” which helps his justification of having 60,000 political prisoners. [8]

]]>Egypt has sentenced 75 prominent members or affiliates of the Muslim Brotherhood to death and delivered verdicts for a further 739 in a mass trial over the Rabaa massacre. Amnesty International described the trial as “a grotesque parody of justice.” [1] The defendants had originally been arrested 5 years earlier during the brutal dispersal of the peaceful Rabaa al-Adawiya Mosque sit-in protest.

In 2013, Egyptians, loyal to the democratically elected President Mohamed Morsi, staged a sit-in at Rabaa al-Adawiya Mosque, in Cairo. The peaceful sit-in lasted 45 days with some 85,000 people in attendance.

Abdel Fattah el-Sisi staged a military coup on 3rd July which ousted Egypt’s first democratically elected leader. The protest in support of President Morsi continued, but just weeks after they had begun, Sisi ordered a crackdown. Security forces loyal to Sisi attacked the sit-in with armoured vehicles and bulldozers in the early hours of the morning killing at least 817 peaceful protesters.

This act was seen by many as a crime against humanity equal to, or worse than, that of the infamous Tiananmen square.[2] Human rights watch described the brutal crackdown as: “likely crimes against humanity”. [3]

However, Sisi has granted amnesty to the security forces which killed the unarmed protestors. Amnesty International commented:

“The fact that not a single police officer has been brought to account for the killing of at least 900 people in the Rabaa and Nahda protests shows what a mockery of justice this trial was.” [4]

The verdict, by judge Hassan Farid el-Shami, was announced on Saturday in Cairo’s heavily fortified Tora prison courthouse. Among those who received death sentences were senior Muslim Brotherhood leader Essam el-Erian, politician Mohamed el-Beltagy, former youth minister Osama Yassin and Abdel-Rahman el-Barr. The court also sentenced the Muslim Brotherhood’s supreme leader, Mohammed Badie, in addition to 46 others, to life in prison.

The process has taken so long that five defendants have died in prison awaiting trial. An Amnesty International representative commented:

“This raises an important point, which is the practice of prolonged pre-trial detention, which is so commonplace in the Egyptian legal system and effectively [renders] defendants in Egypt guilty until proven otherwise”. [5]

A female relative of former youth minister, Osama Yassin who had also been sentenced to death said the verdicts were:

“absurd and unfair … They were the ones getting killed in Rabaa, yet they are the ones now being tried and given death sentences.” [6]

The former US Secretary of State, John Kerry, described Sisi’s bloody military coup as a “restoration of democracy”. [7] Quite how the US would describe the mass trial and sentencing to death of protestors remains to be seen. However, with Sisi seeking to extend his two-term limit,[8] it seems the US sanctioned “democracy” in Egypt is set to continue for the foreseeable future.

]]>https://www.islam21c.com/news-views/the-culprits-of-the-rabaa-massacre-sentence-the-victims-to-death/feed/037257My Open Letter to Pakistan’s New PM Imran Khan & His Peoplehttps://www.islam21c.com/politics/my-open-letter-to-pakistans-new-pm-imran-khan-his-people/
https://www.islam21c.com/politics/my-open-letter-to-pakistans-new-pm-imran-khan-his-people/#respondFri, 17 Aug 2018 16:14:38 +0000https://www.islam21c.com/?p=36661Imran Khan has today been declared the 22nd Prime Minister of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan. Sh Dr Haitham al-Haddad reminds him and his supporters of the gravity of this responsibility...

]]>In the name of Allāh, the beneficent and merciful. May His peace, blessings and salutations be upon His final messenger Muḥammad, his family and companions.

This is an open letter addressed to Mr Imran Khan, the now-declared 22nd Prime Minister of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, his winning party Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), and the rest of the Pakistanis.

A letter addressing a winning party in any country would not but start with congratulating them for the victory they achieved in the elections. However, I would like to add to this congratulation a reminder of the great responsibility almighty God has placed on you.

I

Ruling over a few people is not a privilege rather it is a trust and a great responsibility. What kind of responsibility would a ruler over 180 million people bear? ʿAbdullāh b. ʿUmar narrates:

“I heard Allāh’s Messenger (sall Allāhu ʿalayhi wa sallam) saying, “Every one of you is a guardian, and responsible for what is in his custody. The ruler is a guardian of his people and responsible for them.”[1]

Abu Dharr (raḍiy Allāhu ʿanhu) narrates:

“I asked the prophet (sall Allāhu ʿalayhi wa sallam) “Why do you not appoint me to an (official) position?” He (sall Allāhu ʿalayhi wa sallam) patted me on the shoulder with his hand and said, “O Abu Dharr, you are a weak man and it is a trust, and it will be a cause of disgrace and remorse on the Day of Resurrection except for the one who takes it up with a full sense of responsibility and fulfils what is entrusted to him (discharges its obligations efficiently).”[2]

The Prophet (sall Allāhu ʿalayhi wa sallam) also said,

“Any man whom Allāh has given the authority of ruling some people and he does not look after them in an honest manner, will never even smell the scent of Paradise.”[3]

The Messenger (sall Allāhu ʿalayhi wa sallam) also said,

“A ruler who, having control over the affairs of the Muslims, does not strive diligently for their betterment and does not serve them sincerely, will not enter Jannah with them.”[4]

II

Pakistan is one of the key countries in the Muslim world today alongside Turkey, Egypt and Saudi Arabia. If the situation in Pakistan improves, it is very likely to improve the situation of our Ummah. Hence, the responsibility of Mr Imran Khan and his party is not limited to Pakistani people, despite its great size, but it is extended to include the entire Ummah of Muḥammad (sall Allāhu ʿalayhi wa sallam). The success of Pakistan is a success for our Ummah and the failure of Pakistan is a failure for our Ummah.

III

Pakistani people, including Mr Imran Khan and his party, know more than I know that Pakistan is among but a few countries established on Islām for Islām and Muslims. However, it has been suffering due—in part—to governments and leaders that appear more worried about their own interests than the interests of their own people. As a result, this country that is rich in natural resources and manpower is now considered one of the poorest countries in the region. The situation has been so for the past several decades, hence Imran Khan, his party and those of us watching from afar should not imagine that they are about to start an easy journey as leaders of this country. Your leadership will be full of challenges, hardship and struggle.

IV

The citizens of Pakistani should realise and acknowledge the nature of this journey and thus should not expect easy and quick positive results. Corruption has existed for a long time; corrupt people and systems, known as the deep state, are not in favour of watching their system dissolving and the privilege they used to enjoy being taken away from them. Winning the election is the easiest part of this journey but securing the people’s choice is the hardest. The example of Egypt is not forgotten. Delivering the promises Imran Khan and his party took will be the hardest part.

V

As everyone is aware, the superpowers on the global stage today are not interested to see stability and truly independent development in Pakistan. Hence, Imran Khan and his party have to work carefully within this minefield. They should focus on building the country and moving it away from being drawn into the foreign policy challenges of others. They should be aware that some of these superpowers may wish to drag Pakistan into wars like they did with Turkey. All of us are aware that Pakistan is the neighbour of the now violently destabilised Afghanistan and Kashmir. The burgeoning far right nationalists in India are also awaiting an opportunity and are not keen to see stability and real development taking place in Pakistan.

VI

The main priorities for the new government should be the priorities of the Prophet (sall Allāhu ʿalayhi wasallam) when he came to establish the new Islamic society of Madīnah. Firstly peace and security, then economic prosperity and thirdly spirituality through the connection to Allāh. ʿAbd Allāh b. Salām (radiy Allāhu ʿanhu) said of when he was a chief rabbi amongst the Jews of Madīnah:

“When the Messenger of Allāh (sall Allāhu ʿalayhi wasallam) arrived (in Madīnah) the people came out to meet him. It was said that the Messenger of Allāh (sall Allāhu ʿalayhi wasallam) had arrived, so I went among the people to get a look at him. When I gazed upon the face of the Messenger of Allāh (sall Allāhu ʿalayhi wasallam), I knew that this face was not the face of a liar. The first thing that he said was: “O you people! Spread the Salām, feed each other, perform Salāh while the people are sleeping; you will enter Paradise with (the greeting of) Salām.””[5]

Security and economy are the wings a society can fly with behind the head which is connection with Allah. They work hand in hand to produce social justice. Eliminating poverty is the bare minimum achievement for any honest and successful government.

VII

The new Prime Minister Imran Khan and his party should work hard to turn Pakistan into a truly democratic country that rules by Sharīʿa. If done well it can—inshā’Allāh—be a model for all other Muslim countries. However, being a democratic country is not limited to the mechanism of selecting the government. It should include transparency and accountability in all departments of the state, including the key sectors or departments of any country; civil services, police and judiciary. The party’s top priorities should include building or transforming these departments to become entities that work for people and are held accountable by people. Everyone should remember that peace will not come without justice. Hence it should be priority number one. Appointing the right people in the right place irrespective of their political affiliation is key to this reform as far as they are sincere in serving their people. One of the destroyers of any country is alienating the right people to due personal reasons or partisanship. Allah summarised the key qualities for those who should be hired through the daughter of Shuʿayb:

“One of the women said, “O my father, hire him. Indeed, the best one you can hire is the strong and the trustworthy.”” [6]

“When honesty is lost, then wait for the Hour.” It was asked, “How will honesty be lost, O Allāh’s Messenger (sall Allāhu ʿalayhi wa sallam)?” He said, “When authority is given to those who do not deserve it, then wait for the Hour.”

VIII

Justice breeds stability and development. Allāh says,

“Indeed, Allāh orders justice and good conduct and giving to relatives and forbids immorality and bad conduct and oppression. He admonishes you that perhaps you will be reminded.”[7]

He also said,

“Indeed, Allah commands you to render trusts to whom they are due and when you judge between people to judge with justice. Excellent is that which Allah instructs you. Indeed, Allah is ever Hearing and Seeing.”[8]

We all need to remember that although Islām seeks perfection and encourages excellence, it is also a pragmatic and realistic way of life. Hence, the scholars have always spoken about the gradual implementation of its various rulings. This is a great and very helpful feature indicative of a perfect system that many leaders have adopted throughout history. The great Caliph ʿOmar b. ʿAbd al-ʿAzīz, who came as a ruler in-between a few other rulers who committed some level of injustice, applied this policy and called for it. Ignoring this policy might lead to miserable failure which leads people to disappointment and loss of hope in positive change in Muslim countries or giving justification for external and internal powers to interfere in the running of the country or even overthrowing this elected government and replacing it with another, corrupted government.

Seeking and working to establish justice does not mean accepting weakness and vulnerability. Current political leaders will not be successful if they are weak or naïve, or cannot be assertive, brave and aggressive. Our current global context dictates behaviour that would not be acceptable in other contexts. Mercy, which is the second main value beside justice, cannot exist without power to protect it. The life of the Prophet (sall Allāhu ʿalayhi wa sallam) and the four great Caliphs is testimony to that. Islām, the most merciful way of life, threatens with severe punishments for those who violate its laws, for example. Power is the shelter of mercy and justice. Allah said,

“[O Muḥammad], inform My servants that it is I who am the Forgiving, the Merciful. And that it is My punishment which is the painful punishment.”[9]

Politics is an art of achievement with minimum resources. In politics, truth does not need to be uttered all the time. It is also expressed in different ways. ʿĀ’isha (raḍiy Allāhu ʿanha), the wife of the Prophet (sall Allāhu ʿalayhi wa sallam) said:

“A man asked permission to see the Prophet. He said, “Let Him come in; What a bad man of the tribe he is! (Or, What a bad brother of the tribe he is.) But when he entered, the Prophet (sall Allāhu ʿalayhi wa sallam) spoke to him gently in a polite manner. I said to him, “O Allāh’s Apostle! You have said what you have said, then you spoke to him in a very gentle and polite manner? The Prophet (sall Allāhu ʿalayhi wa sallam) said, “The worst people in the sight of Allāh are those whom the people leave (undisturbed) to save themselves from their foul language.”

Likewise, when the city of the Prophet (sall Allāhu ʿalayhi wa sallam) was attacked by the disbelievers he established a treaty with some internal potential enemies to marginalise them and prevent a bigger harm.

IX

In any country, there is a star of influence: Politics, media, economy, judiciary and military. Beside what we mentioned about economy and security, it is mandatory for the ruling party to focus attention on media as it is now one of the key powers in any country. It is in fact a global power. They need to have as many independent and honest media channels as possible. They should deconstruct its monopoly by a few people. In the recent coup attempt, what saved President Erdogan—after the will of Allāh—was his 18-second video message to the Turkish people that was broadcast initially by one independent TV channel. The Judiciary should also be independent and far away from any corruption. It should be the most powerful sector of any country and should be led by the most honest and integral people of any country.

The military, although at this time is said to support Imran Khan and PTI (or rather dislike him less), has to be restructured in a way to serve people’s choices and decisions. Its main reason for existence is to protect the country against its enemies and not to be an enemy from within.

I agree that many of these advices are easy to be said yet very difficult to be implemented, however they have to be said as clarity of vision and strategy is the first step to success.

X

To Mr Imran Khan, his party, the dignitaries of Pakistan and the Pakistani people: we all have to remember that success is first granted by Allah, and then through our efforts. Allah inspired the Prophet Shuʿayb to say to his people:

“He said, “O my people, have you considered: if I am upon clear evidence from my Lord and He has provided me with a good provision from Him…? And I do not intend to differ from you in that which I have forbidden you; I only intend reform as much as I am able. And my success is not but through Allah. Upon him I have relied, and to Him I return.” [10]

The prophet (sall Allāhu ʿalayhi wa sallam) put this concept in a very profound way,

“A believer who is strong (and healthy) is better and dearer to Allah than the weak believer, but there is goodness in both of them. Be keen on what benefits you and seek help from Allah, and do not give up. If anything afflicts you do not say, ‘If I had done such and such things, such and such would have happened.’ But say, ‘Allah decrees and what He wills He does,’ for (the utterance) ‘If only I had..’ provides an opening for the deeds of the devil.”[11]

XI

Finally, I call upon the armed groups in Pakistan including Tehrik-i-Taliban and Lashkar-e-Taiba to be mature enough not to destroy their country by playing into the hands of the superpowers that will never feel happy to witness stability in Pakistan. They should abandon all violent and militant activities and focus on establishing peace and justice and work for the development of their own country in particular and for the Ummah in general. They should remember that civil war and militant activities from within a country are among the most destructive weapons against social justice and progress. The Prophet (sall Allāhu ʿalayhi wasallam) never allowed any of his companions to carry out any form of armed Jihād from within Makkah or even within Madīnah. Your real Jihād now is to establish a strong country. Daʿwah and social reform are much needed in Pakistan and now is the time to work together to achieve this.

Let us all remember what Allāh said,

“Allāh has promised those who have believed among you and done righteous deeds that He will surely grant them succession [to authority] upon the earth just as He granted it to those before them and that He will surely establish for them [therein] their religion which He has preferred for them and that He will surely substitute for them, after their fear, security, [for] they worship Me, not associating anything with Me. But whoever disbelieves after that – then those are the defiantly disobedient.”[12]

May Allāh preserve Pakistan and its people and may Allāh make its stability and progress a stepping stone towards the development of our Muslim Ummah.

]]>https://www.islam21c.com/politics/my-open-letter-to-pakistans-new-pm-imran-khan-his-people/feed/036661Egypt’s current Pharaoh marks his 5th year in powerhttps://www.islam21c.com/politics/africa/egypt/egypts-current-pharaoh-marks-his-5th-year-in-power/
https://www.islam21c.com/politics/africa/egypt/egypts-current-pharaoh-marks-his-5th-year-in-power/#respondTue, 03 Jul 2018 14:49:00 +0000https://www.islam21c.com/?p=35353Today marks the fifth anniversary of the military coup d’état against Egypt’s only democratically-elected president in modern times, Dr Mohamed Morsi.

]]>The 3rd of July marks a grim day in the chapter of Egyptian History. Time and time again Egypt has seen parallels of Firawn and Mūsā (ʿalayhi al-Salām). It manages to conjure up some of the most wicked and yet also some of the most righteous of every age since the rise of Islām after the four rightly guided Caliphs (raḍiy Allāhu ʿanhum).

Egypt has been a key player for oppressors and imperial powers in the region. Exchanging hands between Soviets and Americans, the dictatorial regimes, under whom languished the Egyptian people, seem always to have one common enemy: Islamic Movements which, despite political affiliations, seek to keep the light of religion from being extinguished. Under the tutelage of oppressive military men, Islamic groups who found unity in loving the religion wished to educate the Egyptian people, relieve the corruption and engage in charity. Even these noble aims were met with persecution, arrests and executions throughout modern Egyptian History.[1]

For the first time since the Arab Spring and the overthrow of Mubarak, Egyptians democratically elected a Parliament and a President. This was a bane for the parallel police and military state which ran much of the economy usurping people’s properties and rights. [2] They had a disdain for the message of the winning party, the Freedom and Justice Party (FJP), with their anti-Zionist, anti-Corruption and Islamic policies and rhetoric. They did not want to bow to the forces of dictatorial secular nationalism which had dominated Egypt.

For the brief year Dr Mohammed Morsi (the freely elected President of Egypt) was in power along with his party, the FJP, opposition groups in the region plotted and planned and, following his eventual overthrow, applauded. [3] From the Military in Egypt to the Baathists in Syria, from Zionists in Israel to Emiratis in Dubai; those in power were joyous at evading minimal taxation and at maintaining a secure grip over Egypt. [4]

However, it was not enough that the Muslim Brotherhood retracted from the political scene let alone contest their unjust eviction from power. Despite the Brotherhood’s peaceful tactics they were met with brute force. Following the coup, on the 14th of August in a period of 24 hours Human Rights Watch notes that the Egyptian Military attacked peaceful protestors at the Raba’a al-Adawiya Square “killing at least 817 and likely more than 1,000.” [5] The number is likely to be even higher as many bodies were reportedly disposed of by military and police units and many were unidentifiable as a result of incendiary grenades utilised by the military.

The regime that has succeeded the democratic reign of the Muslim Brotherhood has brought in sky-high corruption according to “Transparency International”; [6] since 2014 tens of thousands of military trials of political prisoners;[7] thousands of forced disappearances;[8]praise from Trump;[9] sky-rocketing state executions mainly for those denied a free trial,[10] and the greatest relations between Egypt and Israel since the founding of the Zionist State. [11] General Sisi (the leader of the coup against Dr Morsi) has made attempts to legitimise his regime through successive rigged elections and the arrests of notable Ulama and political activists under the pretence of “fighting extremism” which helps his justification of having at minimum 60,000 political prisoners.[12][13][14]

As we remember this day as Muslims and as freedom-loving people all over the world, let us convert this great distress and despair into action. Let us pressure this regime and all its allies to give up their wrongful ways. Show solidarity through activism and Da’wah to our brothers behind bars and work with our brothers in Egypt so that they may revive their honour, liberty and justice under the protection of Islām. And with this we should be hopeful and attentive remembering the words of Allāh (subḥānahu wa taʿālā):

“…And these days [of varying conditions] We alternate among the people so that Allah may make evident those who believe and [may] take to Himself from among you martyrs – and Allah does not like the wrongdoers -” [15]

“And We wanted to confer favor upon those who were oppressed in the land and make them leaders and make them inheritors” [16]

]]>https://www.islam21c.com/politics/africa/egypt/egypts-current-pharaoh-marks-his-5th-year-in-power/feed/035353Turkey Votes to Redraw Historyhttps://www.islam21c.com/politics/turkey-votes-to-redraw-history/
https://www.islam21c.com/politics/turkey-votes-to-redraw-history/#commentsMon, 18 Jun 2018 16:23:01 +0000https://www.islam21c.com/?p=34769The new system will “make Turkey stronger and more stable. This is what frightens Europe.”

]]>Turkish citizens around the world have begun voting for the nationally scheduled June 24th, 2018 presidential and general election in what will shape a historical turning point for Turkey. Six candidates will compete in the presidential race whilst eight political parties will participate in the parliamentary elections. The elections have been fast tracked 18 months ahead of their original scheduled date following the parliamentary approval of a joint proposal by the ruling AK Party and the Nationalist Movement Party (MHP).[1]

Why is Turkey Voting early?

The July 15th, 2016 coup d’état attempt in Turkey proved that the military establishment was still lodged in the deep state. Until the 1990s, Turkey suffered three coups, deposing democratically elected governments under the guise of protecting the ‘secular state’.[2] It became apparent that for Turkey to become a formidable regional force, capable of overcoming its many local and regional challenges, its old system wedged in the military establishment needed fundamental reformation.

On the 16th of April 2017, the Turks determined whether their then constitution was fit for purpose and whether they would back a monumental shift in the government structure.[3] The proposed constitutional changes included separating the President of Turkey’s office which includes the ‘executive branch’ from the parliamentary ‘legislative branch’, giving the President of Turkey the authority to issue ‘decrees’, becoming both Head of State and Head of Government.[4]

As such, the three civilian branches culminate in the executive branch which includes the Office of the President, the legislative branch or parliament and the judicial branch. The military sits under the command of the civilian executive branch. Martial law and military courts (except disciplinary issues among military officers) are abolished and the judicial branch does not contain members of the military.[5] The Constitutional Court – The Judicial Branch – and the legislative branch of the state holds the executive branch to account, ensuring a system of rigorous ‘checks and balances’.

The proposed reforms outlined that the President will preside over a higher degree of jurisdiction. Over 25 million Turks, more than 51% of the electorate ratified the changes to the constitution.[6] Despite this, analysts have argued that since the constitutional changes were passed in the referendum, the country was governed by a type of a ‘transitional system’ rather than one on the model of the new presidential system.[7]

The main ‘power shift’, moreover, is yet to take place alongside many of the other major clauses of the new constitution that the upcoming elections will bring into force.

Additionally, it is well known that Turkey, a nation that has impressed itself over the past decade as a vigorous Muslim power is at the epicentre of the world’s most volatile region. It is working to become one of the top 10 democracies and economies in the world.[8] Changing international alliances, increased involvement and action in Syria, domestic foreign-backed terrorism culminating in the PKK, YPG and others and the need to address pressing economic challenges are seemingly the main reasons behind the snap polls. Turkey’s leading and most successful party, the AK Party, needs a refreshed mandate from the population and their backing. According to President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan,

“Although the president and government are working in harmony as much as possible, the diseases of the old system confront us at our every step.”6

The elections are the first time parliamentary and presidential elections will be held under the new system. It is a feat that will significantly improve efficiencies in Turkish governmental structures and realign the centres of leadership in the Muslim world, possibly setting it on a course of re-establishing the historical prominence and function it lost in the early 20th Century.

Will Turkey become a Dictatorship?

Many question or allege that President Erdoğan will be granted unchecked powers, becoming a ‘dictator’ as controversially depicted by France’s Le Point Magazine and later defended by President Emmanuel Macron,[9] or even a ‘pugnacious’ (meaning ‘aggressive’) president as the BBC put it.[10]

Fundamentally, this obsessive and rather tunnel-visioned narrative flouts two of the most obvious things; the first is that this transformation uniquely affects the system of government and grants no individual privileges to President Erdoğan specifically, but to the elected Head of State, whether Erdoğan or whoever else may win.

The second is that President Erdoğan joins the race as a civilian contender for the post against five others. And although understandably the favourite, he will compete for the largest share of the democratic mandate of the Turkish people. This is what we call ‘Democracy’, in Latin: dēmokratia, from dēmos ‘the people’ and ‘kratia’ ‘power, rule.’

On the contrary, a militarily dislodging of a ‘Democratic’ system is called a ‘coup’, which, according to the BBC, exclusively in the case Turkey, was described as a time when the “army intervened in politics, seeing itself as the guarantor of Atatürk’s secular republic.”13

Let us for a moment agree with Turko-sceptic media and assume a democracy will somehow breed an autocracy; if the Turks opt to be ruled by a ‘dictator’, why does the West feign sympathy? The play on words in the run up to this election in non-Turkish media has all but clouded the very basics of what is happening in Turkey.

Unsurprisingly, no one will argue that the United States, most of South America, as well as many other African and central Asian nations that govern themselves under full presidential systems are actually dictatorships, so there is nothing sympathetic about this biased Turko-scepticism.

Critics of Erdoğan will go on to ‘prove’ he is an authoritarian by absurdly listing some of the normal privileges presidents enjoy in full presidential systems. They will argue that the model “lacks the safety mechanisms of checks and balances” at it gives the president the power to appoint cabinet ministers, propose budgets, appoint some members of the nation’s highest judicial body, “dissolve the national assembly” and impose states of emergency.[11]

For those who may not be aware, for the last few hundred years our own Prime Minister has enjoyed the power of appointing cabinet ministers, too. The PM enjoys “determining with the Chancellor of the Exchequer, the Deputy Prime Minister and the Chief Secretary of the Treasury…” all effectively appointed by the PM in the first place, to determine “…detailed contents of the Budget.”[12]

As for the dissolution of the national assembly or parliament, according to Article 116 of the Turkish Government’s proposed bill, presidential elections will be renewed alongside any such dissolution.[13] In fact, much of the coverage in the run up to the election will bank on readers not reviewing the constitutional changes themselves – see notes below for this list.[14]

Do Western Governments have a problem with Dictators anyway?

The careful rhetoric such as: “alarm raised on Turkey’s drift to authoritarianism”, a “dangerous step backwards”, according to the Strasbourg-based Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE)[15] and how the “presence of police forces in polling stations…could have a deterrent effect on voters”[16] leads us to believe that Europe is genuinely concerned about an abortion of democracy in the Muslim world.

Let us not forget that in 2017, about a week before banning Turkey’s Foreign Minister Angela Merkel inaugurated an industrial ‘megaproject’,[17] with a real democrat and Human Rights titleholder (maybe by its standards): Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi. He also visited Emmanuel Macron in the same year to a ‘warm reception’ and promise of enhanced bilateral relations.[18] El-Sisi did not only thwart Egypt’s only successful modern democratic experiment by climbing to power on the back of a tank, but he killed more than 3,000 people in the process.

In the ‘New Egypt’, there reside over 60,000 political prisoners in dungeons and over 1,000 are missing; for demonstrating for democracy.[19] And yet, European centres of power criticise the Turkish government’s ‘witch hunt’ for detaining tens of thousands complicit in the July 2016 anti-democracy failed coup.[20]

The Council of Europe derides Turkey’s State of Emergency, but does not bat an eyelid that France, ‘the Birthplace of Modern Democracy’, held its 2017 general elections under exactly the same circumstances.[21] Europe had no qualms in signing mega-deals with the Saudi Arabian Crown-Prince who could not possibly be described as a democrat and is no stranger to mass incarceration. Billboards advertising the Prince’s policies of ‘empowerment’ and ‘openness’ blanketed London,[22] and the same magazine that decried President Erdoğan as a ‘Dictator’, dedicated its front cover to his tribute. Titled: ‘Le prince qui peut tout changer’, the cover was projected on electronic billboards at the Charles de Gaulle International Airport in Paris.[23]

Europe’s love of amenable dictators or democratic war criminals such as Netanyahu is nothing new. The point, however, is that Europe should come clean on why it is disparaging Erdoğan and Turkey, closing their state-funded Mosques and putting unfair restrictions on their political campaigning.[24]

In reality, it is Turkey’s veering to a more stable and efficient system of government that escapes its rivals’ ability to dislodge the prosperous and characteristically Islamic government that vexes Europe. According to Ahmed b. Rashid b. Saeed, a professor of political media at Riyadh’s King Saud University, the new system will “make Turkey stronger and more stable. This is what frightens Europe.”[25] For the first time, an Islamic leader’s influence on a nation of 80 million will rival the ultra-secularist Mustafa Kemal Atatürk himself.[26] It is a prospect that is encouraging Muslims across the world, and included in this hopefulness are Europe’s Muslim minorities; the ‘Turks’ of old, and the neo-scapegoats of Europe’s socio-economic failures.

In my opinion therefore every Muslim is then left with no choice but to eagerly stand behind Erdoğan and the AK Party. In Turkey we see a hopeful future for Islām, Muslims and all the disenfranchised, oppressed and the defenceless of this world by the permission of Allāh.

]]>https://www.islam21c.com/politics/turkey-votes-to-redraw-history/feed/134769The 14th August Massacre: Remembering Rabaahttps://www.islam21c.com/politics/the-14th-august-massacre-remembering-rabaa/
https://www.islam21c.com/politics/the-14th-august-massacre-remembering-rabaa/#commentsMon, 14 Aug 2017 14:00:58 +0000http://www.islam21c.com/?p=23155On this 14th of August, whilst one Muslim nation celebrates its supposed independence from colonial subjugation, Muslims of the world cannot help but remember another Muslim nation's cry for their own independence from subjugation. Ahmed Hammuda recounts one of the bloodiest massacres of unarmed protesters in recent world history, whose perpetrators are still at large... Never forget their sacrifice

A day similar to this, in 2013, marks the massacre we must not forget. It was a day when the Egyptian Military bloodily purged the two squares, Rabaaal-Adawiya and al-Nahda, of tens of thousands of innocent protestors supporting their first elected President, Mohammad Morsi, knowing it would be overlooked by the scorching anti-Islamic sentiment conjured throughout Morsi’s short office. It was the bloodiest mass killing of unarmed civilians in Egypt’s recent history,[1] and indeed the world’s.

Days before the massacre, Egypt’s menaces took to media platforms and fanaticised over a post-Morsi ‘enlightenment’. That he was an accomplished rocket scientist, Egypt’s first elected leader since before the Pharaohs, an astute politician, the lowest earning President in the world, a Qur’anic Hafidth and an emblem of democracy and had helped secure five successful national elections in his party’s favour were all undermined by the raging anti-Morsi campaign, flared by fanciful social media or outright malicious mouthpieces. It could not be borne that for once there would be an Egypt for the impoverished and a challenge to its crooks. Mobs of armed protestors who took to the streets torched the Brotherhood’s headquarters, killing and injuring scores while tens of thousands surrounded the Presidential Palace, many of whom were armed with shields, clubs, home-made handguns[2] and Molotov cocktails. Gathering in Tahrir square on the 30th of June 2013, it was time for the despot to make his move. On the 3rd of July, professing his commitment to ‘the people’, Abdel Fattah el-Sisi completed his coup.

Pro-legitimacy rallies flowed in every street after the 3rd of July coup, eventually pouring in the Rabaaal-Adawiya and al-Nahda squares of Cairo. These sit-in rallies were, however, characterised by strict civilian order, providing demonstrators with meals in Ramaḍān, full access to television, internet, an array of businesses and vendors, areas for prayer, segregation facilities, fully-fledged speaker and event programmes, organised security and play areas for children with bouncy castles and swimming pools.[3]

Unaffected by the demands but exasperated at the resilience of these sit-in protests, coup-government security officials commenced their bloody campaign. During the dawn prayer of the 8th July, the republican guards of the coup government opened head-directed fire with explosive ammunition at protestors as they were praying, killing 42 individuals and injuring around 500 others.[4] El-Sisi then requested that his supporters demonstrate on the 26th of July to provide “authorisation and an order” for security forces to practice ‘legitimate’ brutality against the protestors and force their dispersion.[5] The general did not step back to anticipate this authorisation or hope to get approval for what was to come, nor did he for once consider that those stationed in Rabaaal-Adawiya and al-Nahda were also ‘people’.

His cosmic arrogance and insistence on quelling a counter-movement that would doom his spiteful feat a failure pushed him to a second major massacre. The despot issued a 48-hour decree against the civilians in the two sit-ins, ludicrously before his petty supporters who were supposed to sanction the decree to massacre had even gathered.[6] Again in the hours of dawn, this time on the 27th of July, the 48-hour ultimatum elapsed and security forces stormed Rabaa al-Adawiya, enforcing a ‘shoot to kill’ policy, murdering more than 100 protestors and injuring scores. El-Sisi had escalated the situation from an illegal coup to a fully waged military war on the Egyptian populace. International response was, however, categorised by weakness and utter disdain. The British Foreign Ministry at the time curbed its condemnation to the words “now is the time for dialogue.”[7]

The Massacre of the 14th of August

When it became clear that his Pharaoh-like demeanour would only awaken enthusiasm and further defiance, Sisi and his coup government took their crimes to a level the world had not seen the likes of. Egyptian forces brutally stormed the two sites Rabaa and al-Nahda, assisted by bulldozers, snipers and helicopter fire, dispersing the two sit-ins with all that Sisi had in his depository. Hours on end of indiscriminate fire resulted in the murder of well over 3,000 protestors (some speak of 13,000 martyrs) and the injuring of a total innumerable.[8] Security forces set fire to the Rabaa makeshift hospital that still contained causalities who were being treated in order to destroy any remaining evidence.7 The successive “Day of Rage” in response to the Rabaa massacre turned into an evening of bloodshed with security forces continuing their onslaught onto Cairo’s Ramsis-Square, killing more than 100 civilians and forcing them to set up makeshift hospitals in Al-Fateh mosque.[9] Amidst a swarm of outlaws, security forces barraged the mosque with bursts of gun-fire and then stormed the mosque in defiance to all religious and international customs, severely beating those who had taken refuge inside.[10]

The 14th of August marks a year to the day of the massacres of Rabaa al-Adawiya and al-Nahda squares where many thousands of people were massacred and their corpses burnt.

Kenith Roth, executive director of Human Rights Watch, says that

“Egyptian Forces carried out one of the world’s largest killings of demonstrators in a single day in recent history.”

He further condemns the current regime in the most direct terms: “this wasn’t merely a case of excessive force or poor training. It was a violent crackdown planned at the highest levels of the Egyptian government. Many of the same officials are still in power in Egypt, and have a lot to answer for.”

And while Sisi’s end is impending, as is natural of a criminal of this scale, almost all voices of opposition have either been silenced by summary executions or imprisonment, legitimised by an “utterly corrupted justice system”, which is “little more than a handy tool for the authorities’ repression of any vestiges of opposition or criticism,” according to Magdalena Mughrabi-Talhami, Amnesty’s deputy director for the Middle East and North Africa.[11]

The Devastating Tongue in the build-up to every Coup

Egypt has yet to build its repertoire of military coups. Turkey, however, had lived through the disastrous consequences of military administration four times before it thwarted the fifth by the consensus of its people. In fact, nothing apart from absurd voices in the media can convince people that being ruled politically by an institution designed for war such as the military will produce a social or economic utopia. Anyone who has seen or heard the hogwash spewed on Egyptian television, such as the Muslim Brotherhood organisation that was born in 1928 apparently being responsible for the downfall of Andalusia Spain centuries ago,[12] can appreciate who aroused the hysterical pro-military narratives.[13]

The impact of the media on the movement of people need not be emphasised in this article. With the rise of social media, every one of us can actively prod a movement in a good or bad direction. The impact of our ‘tongues’, so to speak, has never been greater than it is in this era, and it can be argued that most struggles in the Middle East against repressive regimes were triggered and supported by social media to untold extents. Never should the impact of a word thrown in the social universe in support of good or in repelling evil be belittled.

The impetus behind Turkey’s coup attempt on the 15th of July 2016 and Egypt’s coup on the 14th of August 2013 are largely the same. Both were mainly spurred by their respective democratically elected governments being maligned for their Islamic values irrespective of their achievements, how they got to power or the quality of their leadership. Both were exacerbated by bad press and spurious claims, with every person in the world either a positive or negative contributor, and thus responsible for the outcome of the government’s survival or deposition in a way proportional to the contribution. In Turkey’s case, the bad press was overshadowed by an opposing reality, an illustrious administration and tangible achievements developed over 15 years. In Egypt’s case, achievements during Morsi’s year in office were overshadowed by Egypt’s wildly obeyed media. The Muslim Brotherhood’s tarnishing is to the extent that it has even influenced voices in Egypt’s opposition, often introducing their anti-Sisi remarks with: “I do not support the Muslim Brotherhood in the least, but…”

It is through this lens, the dreadful ramifications of a coup, that we now understand why Turkey shut down outlets that incited one such as Today’s Zaman by a court order in March 2016. It had nothing to do with blocking ‘Freedom of Press’, as those who wanted the coup in Turkey to succeed, would have us believe.

When a Muslim sees a good government, like the AK Party, he or she should not smear it publicly, even if there be minor elements or concessions we disagree with. There are ways to go about change without stimulating insurgency. Let us ask ourselves, what is the alternative and are we willing to be partly responsible for the alternative? Allāh has shown us the alternative starkly, it is Egypt, at least 40,000 political detainees,[14] thousands sentenced to death, closure orders for 27,000 mosques,[15] poverty, recession, complicity with Israel and on goes the list. Beware of that word that assists in overthrowing a good government.

]]>https://www.islam21c.com/politics/the-14th-august-massacre-remembering-rabaa/feed/423155Unprecedented Show of National Unity Remembering Turkey’s Failed Couphttps://www.islam21c.com/politics/unprecedented-show-of-national-unity-remembering-turkeys-failed-coup/
https://www.islam21c.com/politics/unprecedented-show-of-national-unity-remembering-turkeys-failed-coup/#respondTue, 18 Jul 2017 11:45:46 +0000https://www.islam21c.com/?p=27393Contrary to prominent western media narratives, hundreds of thousands of Turks from all over Turkey and from every political persuasion gathered in nationwide rallies marking one year since the failed coup, under a motto of National Unity...

]]>Since the 15th of July 2016 military coup attempt in Turkey, mainstream media has tried relentlessly to make us believe that support for Turkey’s ruling party had dwindled following its nationwide crackdown on those involved.

On the 15th of July 2017, hundreds of thousands of Turks from all over Turkey and from every political persuasion gathered in nationwide rallies marking one year since the failed coup, under a motto of National Unity. Participants headed for the ‘July 15 Martyrs Bridge’ previously named the ‘Bosporus Bridge’ prior to the coup attempt. The bridge was one of the many sites on which long night confrontations took place between soldiers and ordinary civilians who had descended the streets to counter the coup attempt.

On the night, around 250 people were killed and over 2000 were wounded having confronted fighter jets, attack helicopters and heavy weaponry.[1] Were it to have succeeded, this would have been Turkey’s fourth military coup, except this time, against the most successful and repeatedly elected government in its modern history. The unprecedented civilian response, instigated by a Facetime message that President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan sent through an iPhone, marked a distinct turning point in a country once prone to military coups.

Mentioning the sacrifices of Turkey’s populace, the president, who himself narrowly escaped a commando assault on his residence, placed a remembrance plaque on the bridge and addressed the crowds between the two sides of Istanbul saying:

“On the 15th of July, the Turkish nation proved itself not reluctant to sacrifice souls in order to defend its sanctities,” before thanking “every member of the nation who defended their freedom, their Adhān (call to prayer) and their state.” Adding:

“The Gulen Movement is not solely responsible… and the coup attempt on the night of the 15th was not the first and possibly not the last,” indicating his readiness to approve a bill that reintroduces the death penalty if parliament votes in its favour.

“On the night of the 15th, we sacrificed 250 martyrs, but we gained the future of our country.”

“That day the traitors used heavy weapons against the nation, but the people who came, just like today, only had their flags and their Imān (faith)… do you know what God has promised the martyrs? For those who fight in the way of God, or in the way of their nation, he has promised them paradise.”

Prime Minister Ben Ali Yildrim, former Turkish President Abdullah Gul and former Prime Minister Tansu Ciller along with other members of the Turkish Government participated in the event. On that Saturday, Ben Ali Tildrim addressed parliament saying: “a year has passed since the massacre that occurred on a dark night”, praising “martyrs who sacrifices their lives for the sake of the country.” Estimates put the number of participants in Istanbul alone, stretched over the bridge between 500-600 thousand whilst similar rallies were held in other major cities.

The event was introduced with recitation of the noble Qur’ān and included an emotional Duʿā (supplication) by the Mufti of Istanbul, Sheikh Hassan Kamel Yilmaz. It also included a broadcast of a documentary about the momentous event. At the end of the event, Duʿā and recitations could be heard from the minarets of Turkey.

Exactly a year ago, Turkish citizens took to the streets in their thousands, particularly in Istanbul and Turkey’s capital Ankara, where they came together to hamper some soldiers from overrunning the Parliament in Ankara, Istanbul’s International Airport and Security Directorates across a number of Turkish cities. This forced those members of the military surrounding the facilities to retreat in an extraordinary spectacle of unity, sacrifice, and resilience, finally failing the coup attempt.

Since then, around 170,000 have faced legal proceedings related to the coup attempt and 50,500 have been arrested, along with 169 army generals, 8800 police department members, governors, members of the judiciary and journalists. Many have been found legally complicit in the coup attempt or found to have associations with “terrorist organisations” like the PKK, PYD and YPD.

Muslims across the world have marvelled over how a scheme of this size was scuppered, returning the favour to Allah, then to the resolute Turks, divinely rewarded for years of service to the people of Syria, Burma, Somalia and Palestine to name but a few.

]]>https://www.islam21c.com/politics/unprecedented-show-of-national-unity-remembering-turkeys-failed-coup/feed/027393Anniversary: When Democracy Died in Egypthttps://www.islam21c.com/news-views/anniversary-when-democracy-died-in-egypt/
https://www.islam21c.com/news-views/anniversary-when-democracy-died-in-egypt/#respondMon, 03 Jul 2017 12:50:56 +0000https://www.islam21c.com/?p=27268Today marks the fourth anniversary of the military coup d’état against Egypt’s first and last democratically-elected president in modern times, President Mohamed Morsi...

]]>Today marks the fourth anniversary of the military coup d’état against Egypt’s first and last democratically-elected president in modern times, President Mohamed Morsi.

Scroll down to take a look back at the moment the Arab Spring was undermined and reversed in Egypt leading to the following years of unprecedented crackdown on civilised political debate and dissent, heralding what is now called a new era of violent autocracy in Egypt worse than the Mubarak era.

(It was said to prophet Nuh alayhisalam) “…nor do we see any follow you but the meanest among us and they (too) followed you without thinking. And we do not see in you any merit above us, in fact we think you are liars.” It is remarkable to think that…Read More

The ‘authorisation’ that the crook al-Sisi sought was to light a green beacon before his actions and to doom them unquestionable in light of his ‘democracy’. A more Inclusive Transition? Or a Waged War on the Majority? Classified a ‘transition’, no indication has suggested that this Egyptian ‘government’ is intending…Read More

Using Islām to Justify Crime and Oppression Egyptians are notorious for their love of Islām and their particular love of the Prophet sala Allāhu ‘alayh wasalam, commonly attaching ‘Mohammad’ to the beginning of a person’s formal name. It is difficult to believe that al-Sisi and his sponsor’s malicious scheme in…Read More

Nine Steps to Jackassing a Nation Part 1 Weather reports are indicating that the Sahara desert is being turned into a huge ice rink. Reports suggest that it has frozen over due to the huge air waves generated by the flock of flying monkeys that have been commuting east for…Read More

Last week at the 7th High Criminal Court in Istanbul I gave my testimony to what I witnessed as a passenger on the Mavi Marmara, part of the 2010 Freedom Flotilla to Gaza. Four and a half years after the attack by State of Israel soldiers on the hundreds of…Read More

Note; this article has been updated following today’s breaking news President Morsi, we salute you, because prison in Egypt without justice was for Yūsuf (ʿalayhi al-Salām) when: “He said: “O my Lord! Prison is dearer to me than that to which they invite me.”[1] Prison in Egypt without justice was for…Read More

Decree whatever you wish to Decree When they saw the miracle of Musa’s staff, the magicians of the Pharaoh unanimously believed. Indifferent to what followed of Pharaoh’s threats, they exclaimed: “…So decree whatever you wish to decree, for you can only decree (regarding) this life of the world.”[1] In Egypt,…Read More

Click to sign petitions to ban Sisi from entering the UK – Parliament – Avaaz In an Islam21c exclusive, a member of President Morsi’s Government, and secretary of Foreign Affairs for the Muslim Brotherhood’s Freedom and Justice Party, Mohamed Soudan gives an inside look into the psychological siege that is constricting Sisi. Time…Read More

At the fall of the Umayyad dynasty in 422AH, the head of each province of Al Andalus (Islamic Spain) declared regional sovereignty, splitting apart what once was a unified, powerful entity. This carved the perfect opportunity for the previously incapable Christian armies to devour Al Andalus piece-meal. Province after province…Read More

The Modern World’s Debt to Islām Part 1: Out of Darkness Into Light Part 2: How the Justice of Islām Saved Jews & Christians This series explores the astronomical impact that Islām had on the world. Before the coming of Islām, the world was in a state of oppression and…Read More

All praise be to Allāh and may the peace and blessings be upon his messenger Muḥammad (sall Allāhu ʿalayhi wa sallam). On the 17th of December 2015, the current UK Government finally announced the findings of the review into the work and activities of the Muslim Brotherhood,[1] which was commissioned…Read More

Marking its 68th anniversary, very few remain to tell their story of the Nakbah, or the Palestinian Catastrophe, of 1948. One that culminated in the violent extermination and mass expulsion of millions of Palestinians from their homes to be replaced by a migrant people, prompted by a political movement, branded…Read More

Reality shows are supposed to convey a sense of reality using “real-life” people. The “reality” is, however,[1] that the shows are as real as the statements coming forth from the mouths of politicians.[2] This is the case in a post-modern age when lying has become an unquestioned furniture of an increasingly dire political landscape. As the flurry of well-orchestrated distraction events unfold…Read More

Whilst over a billion Muslims the world over prepare for the month of Ramadān, Egypt's coup regime has come under heavy criticism for issuing unprecedented bans on certain acts of worship in the holy month...

Abdel Fattah el-Sisi, Egypt’s self-imposed president has attracted trending mockery over a televised address in which he criticised the poorest in Egypt for complaining about the rising costs of services. During a presentation by Minister of Transport and Communications Hisham Arafat, Sisi repeatedly interjected before complaining: “the citizen that complains…Read More

After waging war on its own citizens, coup regime authorities have unleashed their air force on numerous targets in Libya in what they claimed are the ‘training camps’ of the bus convoy attackers that killed at least 29 Coptic Christians in Minya province. The Libyan cities of Hun and Derna…Read More

Following Saudi Arabia and six other countries (Bahrain, Egypt, the Maldives, the United Arab Emirates, Libya and Yemen) severing diplomatic ties with Qatar, Saudi Arabia has issued 10 demands they expect Qatar to comply with. According to Aljazeera journalist Faisal Edroos these demands are as follows: 1 – Immediate severance…Read More

]]>https://www.islam21c.com/news-views/anniversary-when-democracy-died-in-egypt/feed/027268Egyptians Attack Sisi’s Coup Regime Over “Economy in Free-fall”https://www.islam21c.com/news-views/egyptians-attack-sisis-coup-regime-over-economy-in-free-fall/
https://www.islam21c.com/news-views/egyptians-attack-sisis-coup-regime-over-economy-in-free-fall/#respondThu, 25 May 2017 13:22:14 +0000https://www.islam21c.com/?p=26490Abdel Fattah el-Sisi, Egypt’s self-imposed president has attracted trending mockery over a televised address in which he criticised the poorest in Egypt for complaining about the rising costs of services. During a presentation by Minister of Transport and Communications Hisham Arafat, Sisi repeatedly interjected before complaining: “the citizen that complains from rising transport ticket prices ...

]]>Abdel Fattah el-Sisi, Egypt’s self-imposed president has attracted trending mockery over a televised address in which he criticised the poorest in Egypt for complaining about the rising costs of services.

During a presentation by Minister of Transport and Communications Hisham Arafat, Sisi repeatedly interjected before complaining: “the citizen that complains from rising transport ticket prices saying ‘I am incapable’… I am too overwhelmed and incapable.”[1] Sisi made this admission during the opening of a number of developmental projects in Qena. Critics reused the statement that detractors levelled at Morsi “if you are incapable of carrying this weight [of presidency], do not carry it.”

In the opening event, Sisi complained of the overwhelming debts from “Korea, France and here and there” added that investments were more worthy of sitting in a bank where they can accumulate up to 20% interest than to invest billions in infrastructure.

This ‘guilt-tripping’ of Egypt’s poorest citizens, many of whom “consider themselves lucky” to live in a graveyard,[2] and 22 million of whom live under the poverty line,[3] is part of a line of remarks ordering Egyptians to spend less, have fewer children and eat less. The speech came only a few weeks after Sisi was pictured with his wife, Entissar Amer covered in expensive and flamboyant jewellery on March’s International Woman’s Day.

Social media shared and commented on the uncanny photographs, recalling that Sisi had sworn he “lived for 10 years with nothing but water” in his fridge.[4] Director of Presidential Initiative 2018, Hala Banna pointed out that the jacket worn by Entissar Amer alone, made by Chanel, was worth around $7,000, whilst the total cost of the diamond jewellery made by Chopard and Cartier is worth at least $750,000 dollars.[5]

In 2014, and in response to an economy in freefall since the military coup against the democratically elected president Morsi, Sisi launched an unmonitored bank account dubbed ‘Tahya Misr’ (Long Live Egypt) in an attempt to gather state funds from citizens’ donations,[6] as opposed to a fund to support the poorest.

Since Sisi usurped power in the military coup d’état, imprisoning Mohammad Morsi, thousands of citizens and effectively the entirety of the Muslim Brotherhood’s leadership, the economy has been in freefall. The Egyptian pound has lost a staggering 50% of its value and inflation has hit a seven-year high of over 15%.[7] This is despite the Gulf flooding the coup administration with cash and annual US military aid of $1.3 billion.

]]>https://www.islam21c.com/news-views/egyptians-attack-sisis-coup-regime-over-economy-in-free-fall/feed/026490Taqwa in Turkey’s Renaissancehttps://www.islam21c.com/politics/taqwa-in-turkeys-renaissance/
https://www.islam21c.com/politics/taqwa-in-turkeys-renaissance/#commentsWed, 17 Aug 2016 17:20:59 +0000http://www.islam21c.com/?p=23182Dr Mohamed Soudan, Foreign Relations Secretary of Egypt’s democratically elected Freedom and Justice Party, discusses the remarkable story of Islamic Turkey. Follow this three-part series which explores the transitional era of Turkey, from the struggles of Professor Necmettin Erbakan in a staunchly secularised political climate through to President Erdogan and his path to excellence. Now he ...

]]>Dr Mohamed Soudan, Foreign Relations Secretary of Egypt’s democratically elected Freedom and Justice Party, discusses the remarkable story of Islamic Turkey. Follow this three-part series which explores the transitional era of Turkey, from the struggles of Professor Necmettin Erbakan in a staunchly secularised political climate through to President Erdogan and his path to excellence. Now he turns to the AK Party’s revolutionary policies that brought Turkey to eminence.

The political development of the new Turkey began by gradually decentralising the state, thus moving away from the dictatorial model that had previously governed. Without doubt one of the key components to the success of the AK Party, under the direction of Erdoğan came through its adoption of a more ‘democratic’ ethos to leadership. In fact, it was what helped Turkey emerge from its political and economic crisis, enabling Erdoğan to present a comprehensive, inclusive and multi-dimensional programme.

By following the life of this leader, one can start to appreciate how great leaders direct history. The AK Party, has stood out through a multitude of unprecedented achievements. Of these achievements for instance was its leading a rapid economic recovery and driving Turkey towards considerable rates of economic growth. More importantly, however, was its consolidation of social justice and democracy in society, honouring the citizen, guaranteeing freedoms and attending to people’s needs. I visited Turkey a number of times during the 80s, then again a number of times in 2012 and 2013 and witnessed a complete and fundamental transformation between the two. I saw a country that challenges anyone that seeks to destroy it, one that challenges inner and outer evil agendas that have long planned and plotted against successful Muslim nations in hope that the latter stay perpetually ignorant, poor, ill and dependant on others.

Erdoğan and his party were able to shift Turkey in an unusual way, a type of renaissance that has and continues to astonish the entire world. An emergence achieved through the Taqwa of Allah, sincerity, love of his nation and wisdom gifted to him by Allah ‘azza wa jal. Turkey thus became one of the top economies of the world in a matter of a few years, amidst and throughout crippling credit crises overshadowing the west, particularly the US, Spain, Greece and Italy amongst others. It excelled to become the 16th largest economy in the world, after being the 111th, and the sixth largest in Europe, thus entering into the ‘G-20’ group with its GDP nearing $1 trillion in 2014.[1] In the same year, Turkey paid off all of its debts to the IMF that once amounted to $23.5 billion prior to the AK Party.[2] For the first time in decades, Turkey is debtless, rather a net lender to many countries in the world, holding a continual surplus for each budget of several billion USD.[3] Inflation dropped from an average of around 36% between 1965 and 2016 to a current figure of around 7%[4] and exports have rocketed, reaching almost $150 billion in 2014,[5] and around 190 states around the world. Wages and salaries increased by as much as 200%, with the Ministry of Education receiving the largest budget against all other ministries,[6] even surpassing the Ministry of Defence. Around 125 universities were built, 189 schools, 510 of the most state-of-the-art hospitals alongside more than 80 industrial zones across Turkey.[7] University-level education is currently free for Turks. Turkey’s annual income per capita increased three-fold, surpassing $11,000 in 2013. Unemployment has fallen from 38% to only 2%.[8]

Other achievements spanned into aviation, with Turkish Airlines winning the best airliner in the world for three consecutive years. Furthermore, in military manufacture, during Erdoğan’s era, Turkey developed its first own tank, military aircraft carrier, unmanned airplane, military satellite, car and bus. This is but a drop in the ocean when it comes to Turkey’s successes under the AK Party, and is not to mention its enormous service to the Muslim world and to its causes.

Wishing to Hinder Success

Yet despite this, many wish to hinder Islamic Turkey’s success story, especially following its defiantly pro-Palestinian stance, as well as its continued support of the Syrian cause against tyranny and oppression. Its support extends to all impoverished nations in the Muslim world and as such many have a vested interest in fuelling internal opposition and supporting coup attempts. This is much alike what happened in Egypt.

What we learn from history and success stories such as these is there are many international forces and individuals who do not want any Muslim nation to succeed or develop, or to be freed from anarchy, dependency and secularism that subdue the holders of Islamic values. Those who claim to champion democracy but seek to pull down elected governments and subdue successes in Muslim nations are actually enemies of it. As such, whenever a government of Islamic leaning achieves or extinguishes problems it ignites and enrages them.

The coup attempt on the 15th of July 2016 failed first and foremost through the Grace of Allah and then due to the love the Turks have for their leadership. The Turks revolted after President Erdoğan marginally escaped an assassination attempt, then Allah guided him to make use of the social platform ‘FaceTime’ so that he is seen safe and sound. Without further notice, both supporters and opposition took to the streets in defence of the legitimate government, and save the nation from the dreaded era of military coups; four in recent decades. Alongside the people, Turkey’s military institution, police force and intelligence acted in remarkable speed to counter this internationally backed plan. And thus all segments of Turkish society astonished the entire world in how swiftly and how effectively they defended their elected government. Out of the Grace of Allah, then these resolute efforts, the coup was turned onto its face during its inception. As such, this disgraceful coup attempt exposed the plots of many western governments, at their head the United States, the latter at the onset of the coup attempt declaring that it is an ‘army’s revolution’ rather than a coup. Likewise did the US support many coups around the world, the latest being that of Egypt in 2013 that also occurred in July. European governments, on the other hand, maintained pin drop silence during the coup attempt, but on its failure pleaded with Turkey to be kind to its orchestrators, threatening that any reintroduction of the death penalty will mean it cannot join the utopia of the European Union.

Erdoğan, however, simply reminded the European Union that Turkey is a democratic nation and does not take a decision except after parliamentary consent.

In my opinion, there is no comparison between the coup attempt in Turkey and that of Egypt. The former is the story of a man and a government that excelled a nation over 14 years to become on par the most powerful nations, cleansing it from its many facets of corruption and treason. The latter is of a man who was plotted against by the Military Council from the first day he was elected. The Military Council had already acceded power from deposed President Mubarak in 2011 by taking advantage of the nation’s revolution and mounting anger, whilst deceiving the people in that the ‘army and the people are a single hand’. But the candidacy of a member of the Muslim Brotherhood, their success in the presidential race caught the Military Council by surprise. And despite them winning five successive elections in the first time in Egypt, they were overthrown through assassination or removal, sparing the elected government only a single year.

All forces of evil conspired to achieve that end, led by the Military Council, the Intelligence Agency, the Judiciary and the Prosecution and propped by countless regional and international forces and covered by Egypt’s sensationalist media, owned by Mubarak’s deposed regime figureheads. I can never forget the police declaring the day Morsi won as a holiday for the next four years. If only they spared him for four years, or the thousands they killed enacting their bloody coup.

I conclude by giving my salutations to the People of Turkey for answering the call of your president without hesitation. My salutations also to the sincere President of Turkey, sincere to his nation and all those oppressed abroad, and my salutations to all those who stood beside the Turkish People, watching anxiously as the events unfolded overnight, prostrating to Allah, asking Him to save Turkey from this evil coup. Turkey has become dear to every free person on earth. We ask Allah to protect it, and to prolong the life and success of this leader Recep Tayyip Erdoğan. Amin.